Did You 'Cat'-ch That? Tuesday! - Guitar Villain
by callmeakumatized
Summary: "My Miracuuulooouuusss!" Jagged Stone ROCKS. Guitar Villain has some AWESOME SOLOS. Marinette is a Rock Star's Album Designer. And Hawk Moth can Akumatized crocodiles into DRAGONS. Chat Noir? He's exhausted. All he wants is a couple autographs and something a little deeper than a cat-nap. Who knew his favorite rock idol would find such enjoyment in pounding him into a brick wall?


"Did You 'Cat'-ch That?" Tuesday – Guitar Villain!

(( YES I KNOW IT'S SATURDAY. I'VE BEEN A LITTLE BUSY. ))

(( But seriously, go watched this episode after this. There is so much in that episode that I did not catch before! ))

Jagged Stone stared at the fuchsia CD cover in utter disgust.

"What happened to the raw, impulsive artistry that made _this_!?" he vocalized Marinette's inner thoughts, then heartily dropped the CD case on the ground as if it were garbage.

Marinette wasn't upset; it _was_ garbage. At least it was for what she believed actually represented the essence that was _Jagged Stone_. The sight left her a bit relieved. She had sincerely hoped he wasn't actually taking to the idea of changing his entire image, especially just so he could "fit in" with what was "popular".

Marinette rubbed at the back of her hair, glancing at Mr. Roth before answering.

"Yeah, about that…Mr. Roth told me–"

Without warning a huge hand took hold of her, large enough to cover the entire upper half of her body.

(She was used to big guys, having grown up with her Papa, but this was _not_ her Papa.)

"Marinette's young, Jag!" Mr. Roth insisted, trying to drive home his point. Marinette could tell he was fighting a battle that Team Jagged had already won. "She represents our target audience. She's come up with a modern concept that's exactly what you need."

Jagged crossed his arms, bemused, and shook his head. He smiled knowingly, the look in his eyes still the hard-edged Jagged who Paris – and the world – knew and loved.

"Doesn't it look a lot like the cover of that XY guy?"

 _Pffft._ Marinette tried not to laugh out loud. She could tell this wasn't Jagged's first rodeo with Mr. Roth.

Jagged turned directly to Marinette now.

"Marinette, don't listen to Bob. Could you do another one? You know–" he pulled his hand into the two-fingered rocker pose – " _Jagged-Style_?"

"Yeah sure!" Marinette said excitedly, before she shrunk away from the massive hand on her shoulder. "But I don't know if…" Her eyes flitted from Jagged to Mr. Roth again.

Jagged seemed to be done playing this game, and done with Mr. Roth, boss-man or not. With a grab for Marinette, Jagged took her by the hands and looked directly into her eyes. It wasn't a pleading look – he was too sure of his own success for that – but his tone, the one he usually reserved for the rare anthem or slow song, spoke volumes of confidence for Marinette.

"You're my girl, Marinette."

 _Yes, yes I am._

"Remember: _raw_ , _impulsive_ artistry."

 _Yeah…YEAH! I SO GOT THIS!_

"I think we're all done here, Bob.

 _YES WE ARE._

"No we are _NOT!_ " Bob retorted angrily, the white bristles of his mustache twitching. A sharp, low growl from Fang, the rocker's crocodilian pet, silenced Bob immediately. Marinette wasn't scared to be around Fang. She knew he wasn't going to _really_ hurt anyone…but it seemed Mr. Roth hadn't come to that realization yet. He yelled and jumped away so fast, he could've given Ladybug a run for her money.

 _Well_ , Marinette laughed to herself, _maybe Chat, but not Ladybug…._

"Come with me, Marinette," Penny's soft voice called to Marinette, pulling her away from her little imaginings. With an arm around the young designer, Penny led Marinette around the group of arguing guys. "Don't worry, just do your best, OK?"

Aw. Penny the Peacemaker.

 _How did we get all the way across the room so fast?_

 _…_ Penny the Magician….

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"Why am _I_ number one?" the big-headed (and big- _haired_ ) pop artist bragged to the reporter on the TV. Adrien watched in his car as XY went on about his computer-generated "perfect" music.

Adrien pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance, but couldn't seem to switch the station off.

"…What do you think of him?"

They were talking about Jagged Stone, the most awesome rocker in history.

XY, oblivious to anyone or anything that resembled _actual_ talent, made a scoffing noise before answering.

"Jagged Stone? The 'Hero' of rock'n'roll?"

"You _BET_ he's the Hero of Rock'n'Roll!" Adrien shouted at the small screen. Even Gorilla grunted in assent.

At XY's next comment, Adrien sputtered in abhorrence and disbelief.

" _Old_ school!? A _Has_ -been!?"

"He'll never be number one, not while XY is here."

UGH, talking in third person? _So_ annoying.

"My music is _killer_."

 _GET OFF THE COUCH YOU UNCULTURED SWINE WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?_

Adrien jumped out of the car when it stopped and only had a moment to realize that he wasn't at home, but at Chloe's hotel.

Ugh. Great.

OH, IT'S MARINETTE!

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Hawk Moth was _stoked_.

He'd been designing _this_ outfit ever since Jagged's arrival in Paris.

 _I was able to change Rogercop's car.…_ Hawk Moth mused whilst calling up his mighty butterfly army. _Perhaps I_ will _be able to change the crocodile as well!_

As the window opened, Hawk Moth mentally prepped himself.

 _A'ight. Monologue in the darkness time!_

"I feel a _disharmonious_ soul…"

 _PFFFT. Okay, okay, don't laugh, you PRACTICED this! Even if you_ are _an absolute_ wit _…._

"Ideal prey for my evil Akumas." Hawk Moth gently placed a gloved hand over the white butterfly in his other palm and watched as the purple and black magic _evilized_ it. Letting it go, he watched it fly out the small window, a grin crawling onto his features. "Go find that Jagged Stone and _rock_ his world!"

 _Totally nailed that scepter spin!_

Sceptor? Cane? _I mean, I guess I could use it as a cane…but it has this sweet thingy that holds…evil…ness. And unpurified Akuma._

 _OH! We're here already!_

 _Eh-hem._

"Guitar Villain. I am Hawk Moth. I'm giving you and your vicious crocodile the power to show the whole world that you are the number one _rocker_. Just make sure you get me Ladybug and Chat Noir's Miraculous in return."

"YEEEAAHH!" Hawk Moth heard Jagged's acceptance of the deal. _Excellent_. "Let's _rock_!"

Hawk Moth saw in his mind's eye the magic overtake Jagged…and the crocodile.

 _AhahahahaHAHA SWEET BEANS AND MOLASSES! IT WORKED!_

"Alexa!" Hawk Moth shouted out into the darkness. "Play 'Jagged Stone Rocks Rock' Playlist!"

Hawk Moth brought up his cane (scepter?) into both arms, power-strumming it like the air guitar it now was.

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"Hey, Marinette!" Adrien called out excitedly. In the half-second he waited for a response, he grew impatient. "Hey! _Hi!_ " He waved frantically, smiling with wide, hopeful eyes.

 _NOTICE ME, WOMAN!_

"Oh hey!" Marinette looked up from the pink CD thing in her hands. "What's going on? I mean," she shot him a finger gun, "how's up? I MEAN!" Marinette grunted, slapping the side of her face. Adrien wasn't really paying attention. He could only stand stock-still and stare at her. He supposed there was _probably_ one of his unfortunately goofy grins on his face, but he was distracted by the thought of Marinette, the embodiment of the perfect mix of funny and cute. When she paused, Adrien tried to take the opportunity to say something.

"Well–"

Too late.

As he opened his mouth to say something else, Chloe came barreling out the hotel door, shoving Marinette as she made her way to Adrien.

 _Ack! She is going to_ pummel _you, Chloe!_

"Adrikiiiiiins!"

Adrien grimaced as Chloe through her arms around him in a…hug? A hug that Adrien didn't return. He stood in a defensive stance instead, trying to put as much distance between himself and Chloe without seeming _too_ rude that she would notice. He flicked his eyes to Marinette – she was _ticked_. Great.

Straining his brain _not_ to think longingly about his house across the street (he never thought _that_ would happen), Adrien tried to tune back into what Chloe was saying.

"…you're a big fan of Jagged Stone."

"Uh, I am!" That seemed like a safe enough answer for not paying attention. Ugh, she was _so close_.

"Soooo you get a private meeting with your favorite star! He's staying right here in Daddy's hotel!"

 _Well, yeah, we were there at the front desk together when he arrived_.

Adrien had stuck out his right foot as a counterbalance when Chloe was trying to come onto him (quite literally), his hand ready just in case she tried to get too, _too_ close. When she suddenly backed off, Adrien barely had time to process that his arm was being laced through Chloe's. He was so put-off by the contact of _one_ girl when he really would have preferred the _other_ that his mind started to wander…and the only thought it could keep a grip on was to _avoid Marinette's eye contact at all costs because oh goodness I hope she knows I'd rather not be doing this_.

Back at the car, Adrien's bodyguard, whom he affectionately named "the Gorilla", stood "guard" and watched the girl who was obviously Ladybug as she chatted with what must be her little magical creature. The Gorilla wondered if, like all the conversations he'd overheard between Adrien and his own creature, they were having an extensive argument about cheese. He wouldn't have said anything to her – or even made his presence known – but other people were starting to walk by and…stare. That Ladybug girl _was_ really into talking to her bag. Casually he leaned far to the side, his huge stature and a small, questioning grunt alerting her to him almost immediately.

"Uh..!" she panicked momentarily. "Talking bag! New technology! Imported from Japan!"

The Gorilla guffawed to himself as the pig-tailed girl hurriedly scooted out of sight, bag still in hand.

Saving Paris, by not outing anyone, one superhero at a time.

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Adrien wondered absentmindedly why the heck his father insisted on designing jeans that had nearly _no_ pockets. Nino had pockets. Front pockets that could actually hold his cell phone. And his iPod. And pens and pencils. And who knew what else. But Adrien was stuck with skinny jeans that showed off his legs, and therefore had no use for pockets where someone who was trying really hard to _not_ show their clenched fists could hide their hands inside. He'd settle for half-hidden hands for now. At least as Chat Noir he had some magical belt and pocket powers.

Adrien inwardly sighed as his mind was forced away from his musings about the unfairness of his pants pockets, staring down at the bouncing figure that was Chloé Bourgeois. She really was excited for him to be here. He was thankful for her, and not for the first time, for actually taking an interest in him through all these years. Although it had recently become more of being _seen with_ him than before, he was still grateful she actually made the effort to do something _nice_ for him. He didn't often get that at home, and he knew for her to think about _anyone_ else was a great show of real affection on her part.

" _RRRROOOOOOAAAARRRRR!_ "

And from pockets, then to Chloé, his mind now shifted to something entirely different: a _dragon_.

And…was that _Jagged Stone?_

Well, Chloe was right. She had set up a private meeting between him and Jagged Stone…just definitely not in the way she had imagined it.

 _HOW DID THEY EVEN GET IN HERE WITHOUT ANYONE NOTICING!?_

"From now on, you can call him Guitar Villain!" the newly-Akumatized rocker shouted out. Adrien assumed it was directed at the group of people doing an interview in the lobby, on which the purple-haired baddie had locked his eyes. "And he'll never do a duet with Mr. XY!"

 _Phew! Thank goodness!_

"In fact, soon there won't even _be_ a Mr. XY!"

 _Ugh. Shoulda seen that coming._

Really, as Adrien thought about the interview he had just watched of XY dragging on Jagged, he'd be ticked too. Well, he _was_ ticked! And he wasn't even Jagged!

" _Rockin' Riff_ , Baby!" Guitar Villain shouted, starting up a ferocious head-bang that would have made Adrien sick. The shot blasted out of the end of his guitar, visible shockwaves racing through the air toward the lobby-sitters. When it hit them, they starting up their own jumping and headbanging, effective enough to be on beat _and_ knock over a coffee table.

 _Pffft. NO_ , Adrien thought to himself. _I will not laugh, I will not laugh, I will not think that this is the coolest villain we've ever seen!_

 _OH CRAP DO I HAVE MY CD!? He could totes sign it!_

"Hurry, Adrien!" Chloe's anxious voice (fake, he knew…it would take a _lot_ more than this to scare _that_ girl) brought Adrien back to the reality of the situation. "Get me out of here!"

Right on cue, the elevator door dinged and the doors slid open. In one quick gesture, Adrien pulled out of the defensive stance he had been holding protectively in front of Chloe and picked her up by the shoulders, plopping her in the elevator right before the doors closed. Without a second glance back, Adrien rushed to hide behind a potted plant, watching Guitar Villain try to squeeze his crocodile – _dragon –_ out the front doors. He wondered if maybe they should just…break…the glass?

As the fearsome duo fought through their own self-imposed congestion at the door, Adrien called on Plagg to transform him.

…And then they took just a little detour over to the Agreste mansion to retrieve Adrien's Jagged Stone album. He _would_ get that autographed later.

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Chat Noir jumped onto the nearest statue after his quick stop by his house, CD securely held in his magical belt. All Jagged Stone – Guitar Villain – seemed to be doing was forcing people to "rock out". Oh, and apparently cars. And…

 _BAHAHA OH MR. RAMIER AND HIS PIGEONS! HAHA–_

 _FOCUS, CHAT_.

"Hey, Jagged!" Chat struck a pose as he called out to the rocker. "C'mon! Why don't you try to rock _my_ world?"

"Name's Guitar Villain, Pussycat. _Awesome Soloooo!_ "

 _OH. THAT DOES_ REAL _DAMAGE._

Chat barely had time to jump away before the statue he had been standing on was slashed in half by the sonic waves. He darted off, switching from two legs to running on all fours, dodging behind cars, trying desperately to get out of the way of the bright yellow beam. In a split-second decision, as was the norm for Chat, he shot out from behind the cars, ready for an offensive. As he pulled out his stick, extending it like a staff, a blast shattered through the area just behind him. Chat was catapulted past Guitar Villain, landing hard in the street. When he looked up, he saw the purple dragon from earlier…and it had breathed _fire_.

 _AHHH A'IGHT, I'M OUT._

It wasn't very sneaky, but Chat was desperate. He must have looked absurd, but the thing _breathes fire_! It's not like he could think clearly! What he really needed was Ladybu–

OWWWWW.

His thoughts were disrupted by an "awesome" guitar solo smashing him into the brick wall of a nearby building.

OWW.

And again.

OWW.

And again.

That last one did him in, and all Chat could do was slouch dizzily on the ground below the nice indent he had just created in the building, dazed and confused.

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Meanwhile, Hawk Moth was laughing too hard in his secret evil lair to remind Guitar Villain to grab Chat Noir's Miraculous. This was turning into the best day of his life.

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The dragon above him came down again, and Chat ran for his life.

Dodge. Car. UGH, bad idea.

Chat was thrown _smack_ into a light pole.

 _The one metal pole in this whole area? REALLY?_

And Chat was officially 100% done.

Before the dragon's fire could rid Chat of the misery that had become his life for the last 15 minutes or so, Ladybug swirled in to save the day.

"Chat Noir!" she said, using that authoritative tone he adored so much. "Are you alright?"

 _No. No I'm not._

That's what Chat was thinking. All that came out, though, was a very, _very_ exhausted:

"Good to see you, M'Lady."

There was no more than a moment to rest, but Chat was going to use every millisecond of that moment to just _sit_.

Until Ladybug vaulted him into the air.

"Chat Noir! Your stick!"

 _My wh–AHHHHHHHHHHH!_

Ladybug had circled her yo-yo around Chat's ankles and tossed him up into the air, right at the incoming dragon. Flashes of Ladybug leaping wholeheartedly into the gaping mouth of a T-Rex flew through Chat's mind as he stared into the wide-open trap of the purple dragon. He'd have to remind his lady that while _she_ may find enjoyment in jumping into a giant reptile's mouth, _he_ most definitely did _not_.

Just like the car jack Ladybug had used, Chat lengthened his stick in the jaws of the once-crocodile, locking its maw into an open position. At the same moment his baton stretched, Chat's momentum forced his limber legs into a split – a _perfect_ split.

 _That's how it's done, Ladybug,_ Chat thought, flying through the air before kicking off a building. _You don't actually have to be_ in _the thing's mouth_ – Chat grabbed his discarded baton and smiled at his good luck in catching it so fast – _to be effective_.

At the end of this thought, Chat promptly smacked into a street light.

 _Great._

Ladybug came over to "help" him as he backed away from the light and danced around, grabbing onto his face. It didn't hurt _that_ much, but he really loved hearing Ladybug laugh. Even if it was at _his_ expense. (Ok, _especially_ if it was at his expense…which, admittedly, it usually was.)

"You're wasting my time!" Guitar Villain suddenly appeared on the back of his raging, flying, fire-breathing terror. "I've got a concert to get to!"

Ladybug, who was _not_ exhausted and in pain, flew into action.

"C'mon! We've gotta follow them!"

With a mightily fatigued and exasperated _inward_ sigh, Chat followed Ladybug up onto the roof, watching Guitar Villain fly into the distance toward the Eiffel Tower.

"His powers come from his guitar," Ladybug continued, and Chat thought she really had _no idea_ what Guitar Villain was capable of yet. "We've gotta stop him from playing."

"Well, I won't let you do this _solo_."

It was a weak pun, but Chat was hyperaware that his bed was in the building _right there_ and he was already so done with this day, possible Jagged Stone signature waiting at the end of this or not.

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There was an awkward moment with Theo at the top of the Eiffel Tower that the three of them were all trying to forget before it had even begun.

Then there was Chat trying to "convince" her that they needed a crocodile on their team while they raced to the TV station building, and Ladybug could only laugh before assuring him that, if they could find one that flies, she would gladly agree to that scheme.

And then there was XY complaining about Jagged Stone and acting _so obnoxious_ that Ladybug was almost glad when he was scooped up unexpectedly by the villain himself and his pet, flying off majestically into the sunset. Except that it meant that they had barely arrived here just to have to turn back around _again_ to get _back_ to the Eiffel Tower.

She looked to Chat and to Alec, the TV station guy, and they all started grinning at each other, listening to the screams XY left in his wake.

"D-Don't laugh!" Ladybug said through her own giggle-suppression, pointing a finger at both of them in turn. "I-I-It's not f-funny! HA! I mean, eh _hem_!"

But they couldn't help it. The absolute karma of the situation was hilarious.

And her Miraculous Cure would heal everything. Probably.

When she and Chat hefted themselves up on the roof top to look over at the Tower in the setting sun, and she saw Chat stretch out, readying himself for the second long stretch of the day, she did _not_ misplace her words for a moment because she was staring at him. That def did _not_ happen.

Chat serenaded them in high-pitch rocker tones all the way to the Eiffel Tower, singing about "Frank" their future flying crocodile pet. She was only able to silence him with a race up to the top of the now lit-up tower. Did she ever realize before how adorable it was when Chat ran on all fours?

When it seemed that XY was in more dire straits than they had previously thought, the whole tower shaking with the newest version of Guitar Villain's "solo", Chat grabbed onto her and they zipped up to the top. And Ladybug, _again,_ did _not_ notice Chat's hand placements, or how they grabbed onto each other's waists at the same time.

Then that confounded wannabe dragon had to cut through her yo-yo string.

And she screamed and fell while Chat saved himself. Dang cat. She'd show him.

And she did. By fulfilling her dream from the first minute she laid eyes on that darned creature: catching that dragon…and riding it.

 _I AM THE QUEEN OF THE WORLD!_

SHE WAS DRIVING A DRAGON!

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 _SHE'S DRIVING A DRAGON._

 _I'M RIDING ON A DRAGON. BEHIND LADYBUG. WE ARE RIDING A DRAGON._

And Chat was terrified. And not just at the dragon…but at the sheer brashness of Ladybug. And the fire in her eyes. He slightly feared for his life.

 _Smug_. That's what she was. And he had never seen that on her. She wore it well.

"Nice job," Chat purred to her after a sweet divebomb at Guitar Villain, trying to sound more _suave_ than he felt.

The next divebomb, though, found Chat a little underprepared for the amount of speed Ladybug put behind it…and nearly fell off, screaming. In a very _manly_ way.

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"What's _he_ doing here?"

 _Seriously, XY? Did you really not know who Guitar Villain was?_

Ladybug tried not to roll her eyes.

"He came to tell you that perhaps you've, uhhh, underestimated the power of his music!"

"This guy's _crazy!_ "

Jagged posed in his Jagged pose.

"Thank you!" he said proudly.

Ladybug watched as Chat abruptly left her side, something in his hand.

"How about an autograph, Jagged?"

Ladybug held back a smile. It was a _lot_ harder not to grin, though, when Chat _giggled_. Like, a real "hehe" giggle.

And then she remembered. The CD!

"Which reminds me I still have work do to! Bug out!"

And she vaulted off the tower without a second look back.

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Chat had a bone to pick with Ladybug.

Not only had she tried to throw him into the mouth of a mutated crocodile (who knew, really, that Hawk Moth could even _do_ that?) but she had left him up at the top of the tower with the biggest music enemies in Paris.

And no easy way down.

And only four minutes left until he detransformed.

(Curse that Cataclysm…it hadn't even really _worked_. Not how he wanted it to anyway. And he had found himself on the receiving end of that stupid solo thing _again_. He knew Plagg would be laughing his little Kwami head off later at him.)

In the end, Chat, tired of listening to the two music artists constantly bicker, vaulted them all off the tower. Screaming for their lives, they both grabbed onto him around his neck (EGH!) as he extended his baton all the way to the ground and, as fast as was safe for them all, lowered them all to the ground. A "gentle" (ok, slightly rougher for XY, sorry not sorry) shove to get the two musicians off of him, and Chat barely had enough time to hide in the park beyond the huge crowd gathered there before his transformation dropped.

One good thing about this: XY was going to do his concert. It was time, and there were people. And then the "number one chart-topper" could get the heck out of Paris.

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The new Jagged Stone CD came out, and Adrien bought two. He knew Marinette had designed the cover, and it looked _awesome!_ So…one CD was to listen to…and one CD was for her to sign.

Adrien picked up the case for the CD he would actually use (the disc itself was being downloaded into his computer at that moment) and, for the first time, scratched the sticker to release the scent there. It was supposed to smell like leather and sweat, or so it had been advertised. How Marinette was able to develop a scent like that, and so fast… _oh_.

Adrien had taken a generous whiff of the sticker. Now, though, he shoved his nose more than flush into the sticker, sucking in every nuance he could process.

There _was_ sweat.

And "leather".

But…it was a distinct "leather" smell….

Kinda like his Chat Noir suit.

And there was something else…like…

…his cologne.

Oh, heck.

It smelled like _him_.

Or, well, _Chat Noir_.

If it was actually possible, Adrien was sure little hearts would be flying around his head while he held the CD case in a hug to his chest before sinking to the ground in a heap.

Plagg shook his head, going back to shutting out the world in favor of his uneaten wheel of cheese.

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Alya knew what Adrien was going to ask before the words even left his mouth. She had seen enough Ladybug fans to recognize fanboying when she saw it.

"Hey there, Marinette!" Sunshine CinnaRoll called out happily.

Marinette fell over before doing some type of super-split.

 _The heck…?_ Alya hid her face behind her magazine so Marinette couldn't see (or hear) her laughing.

Adrien had continued on despite Marinette's somewhat impressive display. "So, actually, I'm a huge fan of Jagged Stone's and saw you designed his new album cover."

"I-I did, heh heh." Marinette responded. Alya shook her head. "Crazy, huh?"

"I wanted to ask…if" he bit his lip for a split second on this word. "I could get it…autographed?"

 _Aww, look at that cute face! Like she would ever say no to you!_

"O-OK, sure! I-I'll ask him!"

 _Ah HAHA she doesn't get it!_

Adrien gave her a glimmer of some type of crazy smile as she took the pen and album into her own hands. He was probably unsure of what to do in that small moment. Alya wondered if he had actually had to ask anyone for an autograph, or if he thought it might be something…normal, that people didn't usually question, just _did_. Do celebrities get nervous asking other celebrities for autographs?

"Uh, no, um…" Adrien shook his head, a hand going to the back of his head in nervousness. "Actually, I meant _you_." He emphasized his point by _pointing_ right into Marinette's face.

"Me?" Marinette glanced back to where Alya stood on the stairs behind her. Alya smiled encouragingly, and Adrien's request finally seemed to click. " _MEE?_ "

Marinette grew incredibly calm and silent as she started to sign the cover. Adrien, it seemed, was still nervous about the whole ordeal, unsure about how it was actually being received.

"If you…wouldn't mind."

Marinette, still impossibly silent, handed the CD case and marker back to him. Alya held back a grin as she watched Adrien gingerly take the pen and the album, his face lighting up with childlike glee.

" _Awesome!_ " he breathed out before turning away. His eyes didn't turn back to the girls, but instead stayed locked on the new dotted-with-a-heart signature he had acquired. "Thanks, Marinette!"

A warm feeling passed through Alya. She was proud of her friend. Not only did Marinette do something _awesome_ by flippin' _designing a cover for Jagged Stone_ , she was able to keep herself sane through an entire, un-embarrassing conversation with Adrien! Not to mention the boy was fanboying up the wazoo over her, though Marinette might not have noticed that. At least not yet. (There would still be hours of analyzing every action, tone, and sentence of this moment through the next week, Alya was sure.)

It was interesting, Alya pondered as Adrien walked away.

Alya had never seen Adrien ever seem nervous before….

 _Fin!_

 **BONUS!**

Hawk Moth was grumbling. Yeah, sure, the outfit was great, beard trimmed to perfection (a new trick he was perfecting) and he had successfully Akumatized a _crocodile_ and turned it into a fire-breathing _dragon_ …but he had lost. Again.

And he was worn out from STANDING HERE IN THIS ROOM ALL DAY.

" _DDDDUUGGGGHHHH!_ " he shouted out, dropping to his knees, fists clenching.

"Don't do your victory dance just yet…" he drawled out to "the superheroes of Paris" (AKA nobody). "Because one day I'll play you my favorite music: the anthem of your _defeat_ , Ladybug and Chat Noir!"

He dropped his transformation, little Nooroo spinning out of the brooch and landing in the food pile he kept there for the Kwami.

"Alexa," the man grumbled out in forlorn agitation. "Play "Curse You, Ladybug!" playlist one."

Apparently "Alexa" did not hear him properly.

" _Playing:_ _"Ladybug Rejected Me Again" playlist_."

Gabriel Agreste froze. He _knew_ it had been a bad idea to link the "smart" home devices together.

" _Once upon a time, a few mistakes ago, I was in your sights, you got me alone_ …."

"ADRIEN!"

(( _Pfffft._ ))

(( Other than the fact that my weird sense of humor laughed unattractively at the very idea of this bonus scene, this is a reference to "From Friends to Enemies" (one of my stories), and I couldn't resist. Thanks for reading the longest "Did you 'Cat'ch That?" yet! -.o ))

(( Give me a review, I'd love to hear from you! (8 ))

(( And thank you again for reading! ))


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